<br>I think you may be misinterpreting criticism or suggestions with naysaying (or cluenessless) ... not the same thing.<br><br>There are far more hatchbacks or sedans sold than sports convertibles. The MBA is a clear specialty product, a convertible for those, who do not need four seats and a trunk. It will sell, because there will always be people, who either need exactly that constellation, work with institutional budgets or simply like the latest and fastest and don't care what it costs. Sales will never reach those of the more pedestrian full-featured models and pointing that out, isn't naysaying.<br><br>Same applied to the iPhone in Europe.<br>Everything "the European posters" had stated about the iPhone did come true, including the actual sales, if you care to go back to the day after the introductions in Europe, where I wrote that at the most 100,000 would be sold in Germany. <br>O2 may put a nice face on it, but 200,000 units for Britain are dismal, and a combined <200,000 for Germany+France are pathetic.... but not unexpected by those with a clue about international markets.<br>The rah-rah crowd here (actually still MCF) shouted us down for naysaying or trying to stifle Apple's right to do business the way they wanted to, we only stated what we believed would happen. <br>That's not naysaying either, is it?<br><br>One can well be a fan and still try and keep an objective view. <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>

<blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p><br>Who was it who said, "A computer with no optical drive and a price too high won't ever sell?"<p><hr></blockquote><p>I don't know, but I so rarely use the optical drive on my iBook that it may as well not be there.<br><br>I just saw a MBA the other day. A girl in my Media Law class has one, and it's beautiful!<br><br>

<blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p>Sales will never reach those of the more pedestrian full-featured models and pointing that out, isn't naysaying.<p><hr></blockquote><p>Wanna bet? It would be hard to draw the line but the smallest Apple Computer prior to MBA is the MBP 15 inch. The MBA is going to outsell the MBP15 inch. I bet once the volume of delivery matches need the first three months of MBA selling will be off scale compared to the other models.<br><br>A subset of people like the smaller Porsche over a MBW sedan. But that subset will grow like crazy once they get to fondle one of these babies. Then once the solid state drive becomes affordable it is Katie bar the doors.<br><br><br><br><br><br><br>

<blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p>I can afford to be smug.... now that I know I'm right.<p><hr></blockquote><p>The Cube was in short supply and selling like hotcakes for a few months...<br><br>

The MBA will sell ..... lots! <br><br>Go to an Apple store and gauge the reaction of folks when they see and feel the MBA. I'll grant the MBA is for a specific market but it's a fairly good sized market. Not everyone spends all day in an office with an occasional call down the street. There are thousands who spend more time on the road than they do at home. For those who are constantly hopping on planes it's a dream come true.<br><br>A quote from the article:<br>"A recurring theme in our discussions with the folks at the Apple Store (who just love to gab, it must be a job requirement) is that the MacBook Air is a switcher device."<br><br>I can believe that from listening to some of the customers in the Apple store. Mac people don't ask the sales staff about anti virus software.<br><br>

You're comparing the Cube to the MBA? Oh wait, you already did that here.<br>Well let me say FMITGA here so I can easily find this thread six months from now. One of us will be eating crow when we revisit this thread. Should I bring up your "iPods neat but way way too expensive they won't sell" threads?<br><br><br><br><br><br>

<br>I did write "more pedestrian, full featured" models, didn't I?<br><br>No doubts that as a single model, the MBA will sell quite well, because of it's sex appeal and novelty. <br>It will take sales from both the 13" MacBooks and the 15" MBPs, but in its current iteration, it has to be an expensive second machine.<br>Lower priced solid state drives will increase desirability, but that still won't make the Air a stand-alone unit. <br><br>Also, Apple will (hopefully) also update the other laptops soon .. despite the emphasis on downloading and renting, it would be nice to see a Blu-Ray drive - and that will also reshuffle the line-up once again.<br><br><br><br><br><br>

<blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p>but that still won't make the Air a stand-alone unit. <p><hr></blockquote><p>You're still thinking the loss of an optical drive makes it a lesser machine. I bet you are wrong. I bet that the CD and DVD platter is on the endangered list. Like the dodo bird and the floppy, they are old technology. Gigabyte thumb drives as well as wireless and mail attachments have already replaced the optical drive as a useful computer accessory.<br><br>I have seven laptops that I use and pass around to my staff. One of them said yesterday that their CD drive wasn't working. I replied, "Who cares?" He said he couldn't watch a DVD on the way to Salt Lake. I replied, "learn to rip them." I do not think my situation is all that unusual in that I have not used an optical drive in my laptop in years. It's all FTP or thumb drive or wireless.<br><br>Now if you think a 1.6Ghz Core 2 Duo is hobbled or is not up to the task think again. I was asked at a meeting for the raw data. No problem. I opened a 7,998 line Excel Spreadsheet and wrote a calculation using 2x7,998 cells. Checkmark, there was the verification in a heartbeat. It's very capable for business.<br><br>It has two things which are not compromised. A very high resolution screen big enough to not be thought of as small and a very usable keyboard which is not shrunk in any way. <br><br>I do not understand how someone would label this machine as a "novelty". A Blu-Ray drive? In a laptop? That will be the novelty on the heavier laptops. For light weight thank you no. Do I want to spend a half century ripping a BluRay disk on my laptop? Too slow. DVD, too slow. CD, too slow.<br><br>

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